The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-07-14
The Well at Fishers Station Comes in with
Power Sufficient to Supply About $780,
900 Feet of Fuel Per Day.
The Capital City Company's Well at
Lawrence Proves Equal to the Best.
Ways, and Resists lighting When
Let OFF at Its Full Force.


theory of those who believed gas could be
found in profitable quantity along the line be-
tween here and Noblesville. The Broad Ripple
experiment was partial solution of that prob
lem. the Harris we'll went further, and now comes
the discovery at Fishers Station. which is in the
nature of boomer. This is continuation oil
the indianapolis Natural-gas Company's enter
prise. the directors of which were highly elated
last night at their result of the work.
1t is an accepted fact in boring for gas that q
paying well in certain reg ion is no indication
that the next we'll in the same direction will
prove valuable discovery. One, two, or three
Dor ings may be made without producing flow
equal to the first, and them again. the fifth well
may exceed the first. The Indian
apolis Gas Company. however, has
chang ed this order. It's first
well at Broad Ripple yielded a flow of 300. 600
cubic feet. 1t carried its drills to the Harris
farm four miles north. and after few weeks
successful working got gas under a high pres
sure and with flow of 1000. 900 cubic feet At
isher's Station the result is much better. the
directors estimating the flow at twice that
amount.
It about o'clock, yesterday after
noon. when the Fishers Station drill
touched Trenton rock at 90 feet.
The shell broken. the gas came out with great
force Allen Fletcher, E. B. Martindale George
Branham, G. r. Root and many others inter-
ested in the we'll were there to witness the tap
knew what to count on. as the gas forced
itself out under higher pressure than
was noted at the Harris farm. It
capacity then. nor even after the drill went
further into the rock did they desire to have the
gas lighted. They wanted to wait for an in
deeper went the drill, and greater and greater
was the supply until darkness came. when work
was stopped until this morning 1t is proposed
to go few feet further into the rock before test
ing the flame. The drill stopped in Trenton about
fourteen feet below its SHE'LL 1t ID probable that
the gas veins full capacity has been reached
The directors think SO. and while it is not quite
full the Wainwright. they say it is suf1-
cient. 1t is their purpose, they say, to put down
wells as rapidly as possible and make carey ar
engagements for piping to the city: BY the time
they reach the city it is their belief they will
have enough gas to give partial supply. At
the same time it is the plansto increase the num-
Der of wells, and to extend the pipes in keeping
Fishers station is fifteen miles from the city,
the Lake Erie & Western railroad 1t is thus
only seven miles at the furthest from the rich
Noblesville region Whether tho company pro-
poses to go nearer Noblesvil1e to develop its
lands about the station is not given out, but its
drills. it is said. are going down with as great
rapidity the work will permit
While the Indianapolis Nalural-gas Company
was going down to its greatest discovery. thus
far, the Capital City Company had reached
earlier. This is in northeast direction, two
miles the other side of Lawrence, station
on the Bee-line road: No company has held
blaze from its Briehtwood we'll.
but was encouraged by the presence of oil The
derrick went mile or two further on in
northeast direction to n point near Millersville.
Here the boring proved no better than that at
Brightwood. except a larger quantity of oil was
found. At the same time leases of land were be-
ing perfected around Lawrence. The company
acted upon the theory that as gas
had been found at Greenfield and
between those points. Surface indications
pointed to the Lawrence neighberhood as the
place whore it was probable the Ras-bearing
rock would yield profitable flow. and it was
concluded from the increase in grades and the
lay of the land that Trenton rock was nearer the
surface than at Brightwood or Millersville. Two
and the other on the Smart farm.
water. but the second. yesterday, had enough
gas under such conditions to indicate q grad
ually increasing flow. Night before last the drill
got within such a distance of Trenton to
excite the directors with hope. and
til yesterday morning. Then the drill
began cut through the last bit of shell
and by noon touched the rock Three inches in
to it the gas was loosened and rushed into the
produce fame twenty high. but as the drill
went down foot by foot the flow increased more
in pressure. It blew the surface pipe
out of the ground. said one of the directors,
caused the derrick to rattle as If it was much
finder. and made the work OF drilling one of in
creasine danger. They got it under control and
the boring thirteen feet into the rock
with a constant presence OF encouraging condi-
tons.
AS the Smart well is more accessible by
hicles than the Fishers Station discovery, more
city people went to visit it. During the after
noon and evening hundreds drove out to it. and
came away enthusiastic over what they had seen.
it's strength of body varied, but all agreed that
if the Capital City had not struck it rich, it had
found sufficient quantity to prove the worth of
the 5000 acres it holds under lease in that
neighborhood, twelve miles from he city.
d. H Wiles, president of the Capital City
Company. is properly enthusiastic. ut has
day." he remarked to Journal reporter last
night Hundreds of people have been coming
and going and when / came away this evening
eft the woods full of EN-. This we'll. without
nave not seen the Greenfield well, but those who
have say this well on the Smart
The fact that we don't have to go out of
Marion county to get gas It's here, and lots OF
t. We shall not shoot this we'll Il doesn't
M onv th;r.ssn fsst as the rsn,on sns alto
,ether 963 feet deep-is SO great that it has |
'aised up the casing weighing a. 400 pounds so |
hat the water that had been cased out ran into |
he we'll TO be blown out again with roar like |
mighty storm. Immediate steps will be taken |
o put down more wells in the vicinity, and meas
Tres will be taken TO pipe the gas to Indianapolis |
~ way OF Brightwood We net to exceed |
TX and one-half miles from the Belt road at |
3rightwood and not more than ten miles from |
he corner of Washington and Meridian streets. |
We will have to put the casing in place in the |
morning and anchor it down. We lighted the |
as from a three-inch pipe, two holes in L, and |
he gas blazed twenty feet. This did |
ot get the full force of the well was pur- |
osely being allowed to escape elsewhere When |
n in greater force it came to actually blow |
he flame out"
Western Capitalists Suggestion.
Mr.. L. 3. Williams, of Omaha. who has been |
lspecting the city with view OF securing /
franchise for another cable road. spent Tuesday /
Lake Maxinkuckee Mr.. Williams, with some
entlemen from this city, visited Greenfield /